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The Border Consorum (TBC) works in nine refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma/

Myanmar border. TBC pursues change leading to durable soluons while ensuring a pro-

tecve environment for displaced people of Burma/Myanmar. Our work is centred on the provision offood, shelter, and capacity-building support for the camp residents. TBC also endeavours to increase

self-reliance and reduce aid dependency by promong and supporng livelihood opportunies.

As the polical environment began to change and improve in

Burma/ Myanmar beginning with the elecons in 2010, the

potenal need for the Thailand Burma Border Consorum (TBBC) to be prepared to change its name was

recognised. This became more important aer being invited by the government to discuss the possibility

of establishing a presence inside the country in September 2012. The choice of The Border Consorum

(TBC) was pragmac requiring only minor adjustments to the logo to ensure familiarity and connuity.

The new name was approved by members at the Annual General Meeng held at the beginning ofNovember 2012 and has been registered in the UK. It is now used for all legal purposes and the new

name and logo is in use on all staonery, forms reports, signs etc.

New Name: The Border Consortium

TBC undertook a comprehensive recruitment process for

a new TBC Execuve Director in late 2012. This process resulted in the

appointment of Sally Thompson, formerly Deputy Execuve Director. Sally

has worked with TBC for more than twenty years. She begins her new role,

with a three month handover from Jack Dunford, in January 2013. This

appointment ensures connuity of purpose and commitment as TBC moves

forward. TBC now bids farewell to Jack aer his 29 years of service to therefugee communies on the Thailands western border. His unwavering

commitment to the rights of the refugees and the resoluon of this

protracted situaon will remain embedded in TBCs philosophy.

New Director

S P 2013 2017In response to the rapidly changing situaon in Burma/ Myanmar, TBC began to realign it programme direcon from care and

maintenance to preparedness for return. Starng with a session at the TBC Annual Sta Workshop in June 2012 and ending with

member consultaons in October, TBC has undergone a comprehensive, mul -stakeholder consultave process towards

producing a new Strategic Plan for the period 2013 to 2017. This process culminated in the TBC AGM where the new mission,vision, and value statements were adopted alongside the strategic direcons, which are the core of the new ve year Strategic

Plan to be implemented in 2013. This Plan focuses on preparedness for return as well as the ocial establishment of a presence in

Burma/ Myanmar for reintegraon programming.

P P 2013Although repatriaon is not imminent, it is likely to become a reality within the next three to ve

years. In preparaon for this inevitable return, TBC reviewed all its programmes during 2012

with a view to redesigning them in a way that will help to ensure that communies can prepare

themselves for return and reintegraon when the me comes. Some programmac iniaves

such as peace building support were implemented immediately. During sta workshops, TBCs

Preparedness Programme 2013 was nalized.

A major change for TBCs programme is the prospect of working formally on both sides of theborder. TBC believes that working on preparedness with both the displaced and the conict -

aected communies in areas of potenal return is important for repatriaon to be sustainable.

Taking this approach TBC can leverage its longstanding trust relaonships with partners on both

sides of the border and its relief experience to facilitate linkages among people, informaon, and

programmes.

New Directions, New Focus

Jack Dunford Sally Thompson

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www.theborderconsortium.org

Since it was introduced in June last year, Community Managed Targeng of food

assistance has been piloted in four of the nine refugee camps and will be rolled out

to the remaining ve camps in 2013. The CMT approach is based on approaches

that have been used in emergency and refugee situaons in Africa by a number of

agencies and in Burma/ Myanmar by the World Food Programme. TBC has adaptedthe approach to the specic circumstances of the refugees in Thailand. The underly-

ing premise of the methodology is that the communies themselves know their

households and their economic

situaons inmately. It draws

on community knowledge to

idenfy beneciaries of the programme, thus empowering refugees to par-

cipate in decision-making that directly aects their current situaon. Les-

sons from the rst phase of implementaon are being applied to the roll

out process to other camps. One key lesson that TBC has learned is that

for the process to be successful and for the communies to develop a

sense of ownership and commitment to the approach, Community Mobi-

lizers must be well-trained and the process must be fully parcipatory. It

takes me and paence for the approach to be successful.Discussing CMT selecon criteria in Ban Dong Yang

Community Managed Targeting (CMT) Update

TBC has had the responsibility of

providing shelter to refugees since the

rst group of Karen people ed into

Thailand in 1984. Since that me,

regulaons of the Royal Thai Govern-

ment (RTG) have limited the materials

that can be used for housing and oth-

er structures to bamboo and thatch.These materials must be purchased

from suppliers outside the camps.

TBC has been increasingly linking its shelter assistance programme to livelihood oppor-

tunies and capacity development for refugees. The long-term objecve is for refugee

communies to manage targeted shelter assistance themselves, with enhanced capac-

ies in assessing shelter needs, building and repair of dwellings, and producing housing

materials with minimal environmental impacts. TBC aims to reduce the amount of

materials procured each year and instead to source shelter materials either through

refugee self-producon (leaf thatch) or the growing of materials (bamboo nurseries).

Environmentally friendly treatment techniques are being piloted. TBC also oers wide

-ranging training programmes to its

shelter ocers, spend workers, vol-unteers, master builders, and Camp

Commiee members to increase com-

munity capacity in the housing sector.

In 2012, TBC cooperated with Open-

Space, a group of Thai architects, who

oered training to spend workers in

design, planning, and drawing.

TBCs latest programme report for

the period July to December 2012 is

now available! The report provides

extensive informaon on TBCs acv-

ies during the second half of 2012,

as well as the context on the border

and inside Burma/Myanmar. It alsocontains TBCs Preparedness Pro-

gramme 2013. You can download

the report hereon the TBC website.

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The Shelter Programme

These two meengs are to be held concurrently in Bangkok between March 18th

and March 20th. The Extraordinary General Meeng includes all Consorum

members from 10 internaonal non-governmental organisaons (NGOs) from

eight countries plus TBC senior management. The current TBC Board comprises

ve member agency representaves and two independent members.

Extraordinary General Meeting and TBC Board Meeting

TBC Programme Report

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